The Argonian and the Boy
by KallianWithWings
Summary: After being forced from his home by the Thalmor, former adventurer Soin, an argonian, is forced to look after his old friend's son while avoiding arrest. Rated T for planned scenes of violence and language. I'll hopefully update this everyday. Picture by DJCoulz, check out her deviantart at DJCoulz(dot)deviantart(dot)com!
1. Chapter 1

**CHAPTER 1**

The nord and his son walked into the village of Rorikstead. The nord had short black hair and a beard, on a pale white face. He was well-built, with muscles clearly shown through his clothing. He also donned an iron chestplate over his simple clothes, and had a sword dangling from his belt. His son was quite different from himself. He had short blonde hair, and had no visible muscle at all. He wore only simple clothes, and a backpack. If one were to look inside, they would find a stash of fiction books.

The two walked into the village, and headed for a small shop. The sign outside read 'Tastes of Tamriel.' The nord knocked on the door.  
"We're closed!" a voice cried.  
"Not for me, you're not!" the nord shouted back.  
The door swung open, and the argonian owner looked upon the nord. The argonian had dark green scales and two horns on the back of his head. He appeared to be wearing only simple clothes, however concealed beneath this was a small sack of items, including a dagger and a bottle of poison. The argonian smiled as he recognised the nord.  
"Veug! What on Tamriel are you doing here?"  
"What does it look like? I've come to see an old friend."

"This is Soin," Veug said to his son. "We were friends a long time ago."  
Soin smiled at the child, before returning his attention to the nord.  
"I was hoping we could stay the night," Veug said. "We were on our way to Cyrodiil."  
"I see. Yes, I do have a spare room. Come in."  
The two nords walked into the argonian's shop.

"So this is what you've been doing," Veug said. "What do you sell in this shop?"  
"Are you kidding? It's called 'Tastes of Tamriel, what do you think I sell?"  
"That's not what I meant. What kinds of food do you sell?"  
"Exotic food, things from all over the continent. I get a lot of foreign customers looking for tastes from home."  
"As long as there's no moon sugar around, we don't need any more skooma dealers."

The kid looked around the shop. The smells of far away lands filled his nose. It all looked wonderful.  
"Hey, put that down!" Soin cried, as the kid tried to take one of the foods.  
"Let me guess, someone stole your sweetroll?" Veug laughed.  
"Heh, if you want to get into that kind of business, I can teach you a few things about thievery."  
"Don't you dare, Soin! I thought you gave up pick-pocketing."  
"It's a difficulty habit to be rid of. Shall I show you to your room?"

The argonian opened a door at the back of the shop which lead to his house. A table dominated the room, with a fireplace to one side. Multiple chairs dotted the room, and a staircase opposite the fireplace lead to the bedrooms. On the second floor were two bedrooms, one small guest room, with one bed, and another large room for Soin, with a double bed.  
"I'll sleep in the guest room for tonight, and you two can share the double bed. Do make yourselves at home, I'll be in the shop."  
The kid sat down at the dining table and opened up his rucksack. He took out one of his books.  
"Don't do too much reading," Veug warned. "It's not good for you."  
Veug walked into the shop with Soin, leaving his son in peace to read.


	2. Chapter 2

**CHAPTER 2**

"So, what are you really doing here?" Soin questioned Veug, once his son was in bed.  
"I told you, we're just passing through."  
Soin sat at the fire and sighed. Veug pulled a chair up and sat opposite him.  
"Come on, I'm not an idiot. I've known you half my life, so I know when you are lying."  
"Hmph, I was hoping I could get through here without an interrogation. Guess I should've known better!"  
Veug laughed loudly, though that was more due to the ale.

Upon hearing this, Veug's son stirred in his bed. He sat up in his bed, unable to sleep. Then, out of the corner of his eye, he noticed a small hole in the floorboards. He climbed out of his bed, and peeked through. He could see the argonian and his father talking. He could just about hear them.  
"So what are you doing going to Cyrodiil?" Soin questioned.  
"Me and the wife were having, uh, difficulties with the elves..." Veug awkwardly explained.  
"You're in trouble with the Thalmor?! And you think you can run away? To Cyrodiil?"  
"I don't know what else to do! They threatened to kill us! They found a Shrine of Talos in our house."  
"You're a fool. How did the Thalmor find out anyway?"  
"I don't know. There are too many damn elves spying on us all the time, someone is always watching you."

Soin looked up at the small hole in the ceiling.  
"Indeed, don't know who to trust these days. Someone is always listening in on your conversations..."  
The two sat in silence for a moment. The child was bemused; did he know that he was listening?  
"Where is your wife, anyway?" Soin asked.  
"Reika was imprisoned, she couldn't get away. She was trying to help our kid escape."  
"Don't go blaming your kid for this..."  
"Why not? Who else is to blame? All he does is get in my way."  
"Treasure your kids, Veug. You will when you're old."  
"Looking at what's happening, I don't think I'll live that long."

There was a knock on the door. Veug looked up.  
"By order of the Aldmeri Dominion, open up!"  
Veug stood up and backed away from the door.  
"No, no, no, no! Not already! Quick, is there a back exit?"  
Before he had a chance to answer, the door flew off of it's hinges. Two elves stood at the door, swords in hand.  
"You are under arrest, come quietly and you don't get hurt!"  
The two elves came towards him, acting in a pincer movement around the dining table. Veug looked from left to right, and then to the doorway.  
"Soin! Meet me at the old place in two weeks!" Veug shouted.  
The nord climbed up on to the table, then sprinted out of the door. Soin watched on uselessly, unsure what to do.

"He got away again. Again!" the first, gold-skinned elf cried.  
"Hey you! Who are you?" the other wood elf asked.  
"None of your damned business! What are doing charging into my house anyway?"  
"We're trying to make an arrest, and it appears that you were housing this Talos worshiper. I therefore put you under arrest, for aiding a wanted criminal!"  
"No, you are putting me under arrest because you are bad at your job and you need an excuse. Come on, get out!"  
"I am putting you under arrest for aiding a wanted criminal, and if you do not walk towards this door now, I will personally see that your jail time is doubled."

The boy walked down the stairs, to see more clearly what was happening.  
"What's happening?" the child asked.  
The argonian turned around and looked at him. Veug had run away without his son!  
"Hey kid, come over here. Your dad's gone for a while, so I'm going to have to look after you. I need you to trust me, OK?"  
The boy walked over to Soin silently, fear in his eyes.  
"I said, you are under-"

"I heard ya," Soin said. "But not today, huh?"  
Soin stamped his foot on the ground, and the floor beneath him collapsed. The boy and the argonian fell down into the hole below. The two elves ran towards the hole and stared down into it. The high elf shouted in anger, while the wood elf looked down into the hole.  
"We've failed again! What are you looking for? You're not going to find Veug in that hole! Come on, we need to track him down. And if the gods are on our side, it will be that last time we do!"


	3. Chapter 3

**CHAPTER 3**

The two landed in a small pond. Soin resurfaced nearly immediately, before returning underwater to collect the boy. The two of them sat on the shore.  
"Reckon we'll be safe now. It's a little walk to get out of this tunnel, and it's fairly safe. Ready to go?" the argonian asked.  
The boy nodded, not looking up at him. The shock of hearing his father describe his hate for him, then run away and leave him with a stranger, was still sinking in. He got up slowly and followed Soin. They began to walk through the tunnel.

"I found this cave a while back. Seemed very convenient for it to be under my house, so I thought I'd add a little escape route." Soin explained. "To be honest, it was sort of an abandoned project. I hadn't quite built the trapdoor. Or the ladder. It was just a hole, really, but hey, it worked!"  
Soin looked around at the boy.  
"So kid, looks like I'll be looking after these next two weeks. What do you like doing?"  
"Huh?"  
"What kind of things interest you? Do you like magic, or swords, or what?"  
"Why do you care?"  
"We've got to get to know each other sometime. So what do you like doing?"

"I dunno. I like reading, I guess."  
"Books? I used to hate the things when I was young. I was always playing outside, playing hide and seek and all that. My Ma'd always get angry for getting lost all the time. Always exploring the marsh. I had always wanted to travel. What do you want to be?"  
"I dunno, really. The Stormcloaks are cool."  
"Want to be a fighter then? Your dad was a good fighter. Especially when he was arguing with us.  
"Who's 'us'?"

"Me and your dad used to be part of a little adventuring party. That's how we met. There were five of us. Your father was the fighter, I was the thief. We were good friends."  
"Why aren't you still adventuring?"  
"We just, fell apart, I guess. Everyone wanted to do their own thing. Your dad wanted to get married. One of us got an offer from the College of Winterhold, another got a death threat. We just decided to part ways. I came to Rorikstead, set up a little shop. We still meet up occasionally. Hey look, there's the exit!"  
The two walked out of the cave, to be met with a cold blast of wind. It was in the early hours of the morning, and the moons were still in the sky.

The boy yawned and sat on the ground, shivering. Soin took his overcoat off and gave it to the boy.  
"We'll take a short rest, then we'll walk to Whiterun. We should get there by dawn." Soin said.  
The boy nodded, and wrapped the coat around himself. Soin checked his kit, and made a mental note of his belongings.  
"Alright then, ready to go?"  
But the boy was already asleep, wrapped up in Soin's coat. Soin smiled, and lifted him onto his shoulder. He began his journey to Whiterun.


	4. Chapter 4

**CHAPTER 4**

The boy woke up to the warm surroundings of a room in the Bannered Mare Inn, in Whiterun. As his eyes slowly opened, he saw Soin sleeping in the bed next to him, his tail hanging off the side. He got out of the bed, and began to search for his backpack. He checked the cupboard between the two beds. His rucksack was not inside, but the glint of metal caught his eye. Two small, steel daggers were placed on the shelf. The boy turned to check that Soin was still asleep, then took one of them, and placed it in his pocket. He closed the cupboard, then continued to search for his sack. He found it underneath his bed, took out a book, and began to read on his bed.

* * *

The argonian woke half an hour later. He looked over to the kid, sat reading next to him.  
"Morning. Did you sleep well?" Soin asked.  
The boy shrugged, barely looking up from his book.  
"You looked like you did, didn't make a sound all the way to Whiterun."  
The boy did not react, just turned the page. Soin sighed.  
"Hey, do you want to do anything today?"  
Still the only reaction Soin could provoke was a shrug. He sighed again, then got out of bed to order breakfast.

* * *

"Where are we going?" the boy asked, annoyed at having to leave the peace of his bed.  
"Where do you want to go?"  
"I dunno, I just want to read!"  
"You want to read, huh? Alright then, I know where to go."  
Soin gestured for the boy to follow him as they walked down to the Whiterun Stables. The argonian paid the carriage driver and helped the kid get in the back. The carriage drove off to the north. As the air got colder, the boy curled up into a ball.

"Do you want my coat again?" Soin asked.  
He nodded, and Soin took off his overcoat, placing it over the boy's shoulders.  
"How come you don't get cold?" the boy asked.  
"I'm just used to it. When we were adventuring, we often had to sleep outside. After a while, we all got over the weather. Apart from Ella, who always found something to moan about."  
Seeing the confused look on the boy's face, Soin elaborated.  
"Ella was our mage. That's where we're going now, to go and visit her. She's got a job at the College of Winterhold. Oh, when we do see her, try not to touch anything, she can be a little OCD."

"Here we are," the driver announced.  
The two jumped off the back of the carriage, and turned around to see the vast building in front of them. The town in front was minute compared to the castle towering  
above it. Soin lead the boy up the steps. A high elf in a blue cloak stopped the two as they approached the entrance.  
"Hold it! What business do you have here?"  
"I am a friend of Ella, she lives here. We would like to visit her."  
The elf cast a magical barrier in front of him to prevent entry, then left to find the mage. She returned minutes later, with a breton by her side.

The breton wore an elegant green robe, decorated with golden patterns flowing down the sides. On her left hand she wore a silver ring, decorated with a blue sapphire on the top. It glowed, showing off it's enchantment. The girl's face was flawless, not a spot or a wrinkle was present. Soin suspected that she used her magic to keep up her appearance. She had long brown hair that fell to just below her shoulders. Her bright blue eyes shone with brilliance, and perfection.  
"Soin! What are you doing here?" the mage asked.  
"It's nice to see you too, Ella. I was hoping we could stay."  
"We? Is that your kid?"  
"Well," Soin shook his head. "It's complicated. May we come in?"  
Ella nodded, and the high elf removed his magical barrier. The four entered the College.


	5. Chapter 5

**CHAPTER 5**

"Please, sit down," Ella requested, as the three entered her chambers.  
The argonian and the boy took a seat, and looked around the room. Ella had the luxury of owning an entire floor of one of the towers of the college. Her room consisted of elaborate decoration, and vast quantities of books. Shelves of them circled the room. Tapestries of bright colours filled the gaps between shelves, giving the room a unique, colourful look. An enchanting table stood proudly in the centre of the room, surrounded by candles and precious gems.

"This is where I work. I mostly enchant equipment for the mages here, but I sometimes get requests from others. In fact, just last week I enchanted the Jarl of Whiterun's Axe," Ella boasted. "So, who's this boy?"  
"It's Veug's. He ran off without him."  
"He did what?"  
Soin began to explain about Veug's trouble with the Thalmor, and how the boy came to be with him.  
"He wants to meet you at the old place in two weeks? He means Dushnikh Yal, right? That orc stronghold we used to live in?"  
"I assume so. I don't know where else it would be."

Ella nodded. While they were talking, the boy was looking in awe around Ella's room. He had never seen so many books in his life! His father didn't like him reading books, but he could convince his mother to buy some for him occasionally.  
"So why are you here?" Ella asked.  
"I've got two weeks, and I need to look after the boy. He said he liked books, so I thought I'd bring him here."  
Ella smiled, and crouched down next to the boy.  
"Hey there, do you like reading? I tell you what, while you are staying here, you can read any of the books on the shelves. But if you take any off the shelf, please give them to me, I arrange them in a specific way, and I'd prefer not to mess up the system."

The kid gasped and looked around the library of books available to him. He searched the shelves, chose a book, and sat down to read excitedly. Ella stood up.  
"Soin, I still need to do some work, so would you mind taking the boy with you to my bedroom. I'll conjure some more beds when I've finished."  
Soin nodded, and ushered the boy towards the door.  
"And Soin! Don't try stealing anything, I've made an mental inventory of every item I own, I will find out."  
Soin rolled his eyes and took the boy upstairs.

"How come you lived in an orc stronghold?" the boy asked once he and Soin arrived upstairs.  
"We needed somewhere to stay, the colds of Skyrim are fine for a night, but unbearable for weeks on end. One of our party, Shorvak, was an orc, so he managed to get us accomodation in a stronghold. He's the cheif of it now, so you'll probably get to meet him in a couple of weeks."  
"Who was your last member?"  
"That was Larief, she was a wood elf, and a damned good archer. Unfortunately, her temper wasn't so good. She ended up killing two people in Windhelm, after they insulted her because of her race. Their kid was a physco, and called the dark brotherhood to get them to murder her, along with just about anyone else he hated, included an old lady that worked at an orphanage. She's gone into hiding now, so I don't know where she is."

The boy looked interested in Soin's stories of his past and his friends. He asked the argonian to tell him of his adventures with his father.  
"Sorry kid, it's getting late. Ella will be back in a minute, and you look tired. Though I'm sure we'll have time for that  
another day." Soin said, just as the door opened, and Ella walked in. "Speak of the devil, here she is. Come on then, put that book away and off to bed."  
Ella conjured two beds and placed them either side of her own. The boy, the argonian and the breton all said goodnight, and fell asleep in their beds.


	6. Chapter 6

**CHAPTER 6**

"A dragon! Help! A dragon is attacking the town!" an elf screamed through the college.  
Soin and Ella sat up immediately. Ella got up and quickly searched for her things. Soin woke up the boy, and alerted him of the situation.  
"Is there anywhere I can take him?" Soin asked.  
"I'm not sure, but Mirabelle is probably evacuating students. Take this sword if you want to be useful, I'm going to check around."  
Ella gave Soin the sword and left to look for Mirabelle. Soin tried to comfort the boy.

"Hey there kid, don't worry. I'm sure this will be fine."  
"Didn't a dragon burn down Helgen?"  
"Well, yes, but they didn't have a college full of wizards, did they? Don't worry, we'll take you somewhere safe, and me, Ella and the college will sort out the dragon, hey?"  
"Okay then kid," Ella said once she'd returned. "Come with me. I'll be back in a bit Soin, go out without me."  
Soin nodded, picked up the sword he had been given and ran out into the college courtyard.

The monsterous beast flew over the college grounds, green scales shining in the sun. It swooped low over the courtyard and let out a large burst of flame. Soin ducked behind a pillar and braced himself for the heat. The argonian moved just in time, as a fireball exploded on the floor where he had just stood. He watched as the dragon circled around, ready to make a return trip. Soin took shelter at the edge of the courtyard as the beast landed in the centre.

Soin charged in a struck his sword into the dragon's hide, and to his surprise, it made a spark. Ella had apparently  
enchanted it to do this. Soin smiled and continued to swipe at the beast. The head moved around to face him and he fell onto his backside. Soin shuffled away, to be saved by a spike of ice rushing towards the dragon's head. It flinched, then took off, full of anger.

"Thanks Ella, thought it was gonna eat me or something," Soin said.  
Ella smiled, then turned her attention back to the dragon, continuing to fire spikes at it.  
"Is the enchantment working?" Ella asked.  
"Yeah, it made a spark."  
"Great, when it lands next, aim for the wings."  
The dragon swooped low again, and swiped at the mages with it's claws, but continued to fly away. One mage, Soin noticed, had conjured a frost atronach, while another mage was healing the wounded. Busy examining the scene, the argonian didn't notice as the dragon made another attempt at his life, blasting a storm of flame in his direction.

"Get out of the way!" Ella shouted, using a spell to push him out of the line of fire.  
"Again? Why are you never in life threatening situations?"  
"Because I'm watching the damn threat to life! Look, it's landed! Hit the wings!"  
Soin turned around, and charged at the winged monster. He made a strong first strike at the right wing, causing a roar of pain to erupt from the beast. The electricity coarsed through the wing, causing immense harm to the dragon. It attempted to fly away, but the electricity in it's wing meant that he could not move it properly.

"Now, everyone, it can't fly! Kill it!" Ella screamed.  
Soin turned around to see a barrage of spells flying towards the dragon. Unfortunately, since he was so close, the argonian had to dive on to the floor to avoid the destructive magic. Soin crawled away towards Ella to watch the dragon fall. A final firebolt spell finished the beast, as the dragon went limp and fell to the floor. The whole college cheered, and threw spells up into the air in celebration.

Ella and Soin began to walk back towards their room, when they were confronted by a mage.  
"Ella!"  
"You missed the dragon! It was great to see it die, what an achievement for the college!"  
"No, Ella, please, it's the boy, he's not in the evacuation area! He's gone!"


	7. Chapter 7

**AN: **Sorry for abandoning this for a week or so. If it's any compensation, here are two chapters :)

**CHAPTER 7**

"Where the hell did he go?" Soin shouted.  
"Mirabelle," Ella called, trying to keep calm. "Where did you take the evacuees?"  
"I sent the evacuees into the Midden underneath the college with Ancano." Mirabelle explained.  
"Shite!" Ella cried.  
"What is it?" Soin asked.  
"Ancano is from the Thalmor! He must have found out about Veug! We need to find him!"  
"Where would they have gone?"  
"The Embassy is near Solitude, so they probably went down there. We must hurry!"

The two quickly ran upstairs, grabbed their stuff and headed outside the college. They hired a horse in the town and rode as fast as they could towards Solitude. Since Soin had travelled lots in his past, he was very used to riding horses. Soin took the reins, while Ella sat behind him. Ella cast a spell on the horse to speed it up, while Soin rode as fast as he could. Halfway through their journey, Ella pointed out a shortcut through the Pale, in the hope to catch up to Ancano. After a long ride, they arrived at Solitude. After a short rest, they carried on to the Embassy, arriving at sunset.

"So, how are we going to get in?" Ella asked.  
"The same way we always did. Cast us a spell, and I'll sneak in."  
Ella nodded, before casting a few spells to make him invisible and silence his footsteps. Ella wished him luck, before  
sitting down next to the horse. Soin was on his own. He took a quick observation of the embassy. From what he could see, there was only one visible way in, through the front door, which was guarded by two elves. Unless he planned on scaling the walls into the courtyard, he would have to sneak in, quite literaly. under their noses. He would need to create a distraction. Soin considered his options, and put his plan into action.

Soin held his breath as he crouched underneath the two guards. He slipped his hand into the first elf's pocket, taking the key out. Keeping it concealed, he transferred the key into the other guard's pocket. Then he waited, until a high elf approached the embassy, holding an identity card. The first guard reached into his pocket to get the key, crying out to find it missing. The two guards searched for it, finding it quickly. The first guard snatched it out of his colleagues hand, opening the door. After the elf entered the building, and the guard locked the door again, Soin approached again, intending to raise tensions further. While his back was turned, Soin hit the first guard on the back.

"What in Tamriel is your problem? First you steal my key, now you're just attacking me!"  
"You what? I didn't do anything, I swear!"  
"Of course, my key just teleported, and so did your fist. All _very_ plausible!"  
"Look, I'm telling you the truth!"  
"I don't want anything to do with you. In fact, I'm going to report you to the captain of the guard right now!"  
The first guard unlocked the door and stormed inside, with Soin's victim running after him. The door was left open, much to Soin's pleasure. He sneaked inside.


	8. Chapter 8

**CHAPTER 8**

Soin took a look around the hall. Where could they be? Where would you take a prisoner? Surely to the prison, to the dungeons? Assumedley, those would be underneath the building. But would he take a kid there? From what Ella had said about Ancano, that seemed likely. Soin decided to search for the dungeons. He took advantage of the open door leading into the kitchen, walking inside.

After a half hour tour of the embassy, Soin managed to find the stairway. He was surprised at how long the spells had lasted for, Ella really had been improving her magic! Soin creeped down to find two cells backing against the wall. Both of them were empty. Soin scratched his head. Maybe Ancano took him somewhere else for interogation. Soin took a look inside the cell to check, but there was no trace of them. Suddenly, Soin heard footsteps coming from the stairway, as two elves, a bosmer and an altmer, dragged a prisoner down into the cells. Soin got out of the way, and took a look at the prisoner's face.

It was Ella! They must have found her loitering outside the embassy.  
"I've told you, I am a highly respected mage, and I do not expect to be dragged across the floor like dirt!"  
"You were also trespassing, so you'll do what we say. Now tell us what you were doing," the altmer ordered.  
Soin could see a whip behind the bosmer's back. He guessed that if Ella said nothing, then he would use it. He thought up a way to take it out of his hands...  
"I'm not telling you a thing," Ella said resiliently.  
"Fine, Ervit, give me the whip," the altmer put his hand out behind him to take the whip from the bosmer, who Soin assumed was named Ervit. The altmer looked in his hands in anger.

"Ervit, do you expect me to whip the prisoner with a spoon?"  
"I'm sorry, Aitre?"  
"I'm sorry, _sir_, is the phrase you are looking for."  
"Apologies, sir,"  
"Do you think I will whip the prisoner with a spoon?"  
"No, sir,"  
"Then why did you give me one?"

Ervit was astonished. He was sure he had the whip in his hand!  
"I'm sorry, sir! I will get a whip right away!" Ervit rushed off. Aitre, the other elf, hurried after, leaving Ella in shackles. Soin approached her.  
"Hey, Ella!"  
"Soin! Where are you?"  
"Just here, keep quiet. I can't find Ancano, he must be upstairs, come on, we have-"  
The door of the cell slammed shut and locked, as Ervit and Aitre appeared from the shadows. Ervit cast a spell to remove the invisibility on the argonian.  
"The guards informed us of an intruder using an invisibility spell. I didn't think it would be so easy to catch them," Aitre smiled. "Well I wouldn't, would I? Last time we met, you fell down a hole. Sneaky lizard, I'd like to see you fall down a hole in there!"  
Aitre took the key out of the cell door, and left with the bosmer, leaving the two intruders on their own.


	9. Chapter 9

**CHAPTER 9**

"So then," Aitre, the altmer, began. "Would you care to begin explaining where Veug has gone?"  
Soin glared at Aitre, not moving his mouth. He looked unforgivingly into each of his eyes, then turned away in disgust.  
"Well, Soin, as much as you hate me, I still have you in the palm of my hand. I'll give you another chance, where did he go?"  
Soin once again refused to talk, this time staring at his shackles, which kept him up on the wall.  
"Very well, Ervit, raise the window."  
Ervit the bosmer lifted up a hatch that connected Soin's and Ella's cell. Soin turned to see Ella also in shackles, but her back was exposed, and facing away. Ervit held a whip in his hand.

"I'll ask you again, Soin! Where is Veug?"  
"I can't tell you what I don't know!" Soin lied.  
"Very well, Ervit!"  
Ervit nodded, and whipped as hard as he could at Ella's back. Ella cried out in pain, as the instrument of hurt lashed at her body.  
"Perhaps you would like to say something now."  
Soin ground his teeth, and looked through the hatch. He could see the mark made by the whip when it hit Ella's back. How long could she stand this?  
"Nope? Again, Ervit."  
"No!" Soin cried.  
Ervit lashed at Ella's back again, resulting in another cry of pain.

"Noo! Pathetic!" Aitre mocked. "Well then stegosaurus, perhaps you'd like to say something now?"  
Soin growled.  
"Nope, alright then. Ervit!"  
Ervit hit Ella again. Ella recoiled and sobbed. Soin looked down at the floor in shame.  
"Do it again, Ervit."  
Ervit looked at Aitre, and half-heartedly lashed at Ella. Not feeling the new pain mixed up in the rest, Ella cried as she tried to distance the pain in her back from her head.  
"Once more, Ervit."

Ervit looked around in confusion at Aitre.  
"I said, once more!"  
"Yes, sir."  
Ervit hit Ella once more, creating another mark on her back.  
"Anything more to say, apart from how pathetic you are, Soin?"  
"I hate you!"  
"Aw, I hate you! Well, Soin, I'm sure you can do a lot about it from there!"  
Soin growled. Aitre laughed, and motioned for Ervit to leave.  
"Have a lovely night's sleep, I'm sure you'll both feel refreshed come tomorrow!" Aitre laughed.  
Ervit looked at the two prisoners with sadness, as Aitre closed the door.


End file.
